Virtual event
An Introduction to Futures Thinking
Exclusively for public servants and policymakers
Wednesday, Jul 23, 2025
Time is displayed in your local time zone
Speakers
What to do next
- Catch up on the 10-minute highlights above, or dive into the full recording
- Join the Long-Term Governance and Futures Thinking Community
- Check out our upcoming Future's Thinking Community event
Resources
Join the Long-Term Governance and Futures Thinking Community
The Long-Term Governance and Futures Thinking Community is a dedicated space for any public servant or policymaker interested in the use of foresight approaches to address long-term problems.
Join us as we share ideas, success stories and practical advice to advance the application of intergenerational fairness and futures thinking across global government.
Event Description
Is short-termism anathema to good governance? A focus on immediate gains can lead to erratic policymaking, reactive decision-making and missed opportunities to address long-term challenges. Futures thinking offers a structured way to anticipate change, navigate uncertainty and build policies that stand the test of time.
In this masterclass, we’ll introduce the fundamentals of futures thinking and explore why it is an essential tool for public servants in an age of uncertainty. You’ll learn practical methods for identifying emerging trends, assessing risks and disruptions and applying foresight approaches to a variety of scenarios.
Join leading experts in futures thinking and foresight as they share insights on long-termist approaches and how to embed these methodologies into public service.
Interested in how Apolitical can support you and your organisation? Learn about collaborating with us.
Image Credit: Pexels
Speakers
Ana Rodriguez DeFrates
Senior Business Process Consultant, Office of Budget and Organisational Excellence, City of Austin
United States
Andrew Curry
Director of Futures at The School of International Futures
UK
Ana Rodriguez DeFrates, is a public sector strategist with 20 years of experience across government, nonprofit, and philanthropic sectors. At the City of Austin, she supports implementation of the Citywide Strategic Plan, aligning departments, leadership, and Council around shared goals to improve quality of life for all Austinites. She leads initiatives that integrate equity, open government, and strategic foresight into city operations—helping teams anticipate challenges and co-create people-centered solutions. Ana also manages Austin’s engagement with the Open Government Partnership, advancing transparency, community participation, and accountability. She holds a JD from South Texas College of Law Houston and both MSW and BSW degrees from The University of Texas at Austin.
Andrew Curry, As Director of Futures, Andrew leads SOIF’s Advisory practice, advises on futures methods and techniques, and contributes as faculty to SOIF’s learning and training. He has been a futurist for more than 20 years, working with clients on a wide range of projects across the public sector, the non-profit sector, and the private sector, and he continues to do this for SOIF. Highlights of his work since he joined SOIF in 2019 include a project on the future of food environments for Impact on Urban Health; mapping routes to Net Zero mobility (with Mott MacDonald) for the UK Department of Transport; designing and piloting a community futuring process with Wales Community and Voluntary Action; and working with Chatham House on the impacts of the Russia-Ukraine war on food, energy, and resources. He has also published widely on futures. He was the lead author of the Henley Centre’s 2001 report for the Cabinet Office, “Understanding Best Practice in Strategic Futures.” He wrote – with Anthony Hodgson – the first academic paper on the Three Horizons method and a paper on comparative scenarios methods, with Wendy Schultz. He also has a chapter on the post-war history of futures and scenarios in the Routledge Handbook of Social Futures.
